TO: Parkinson=92s-affected community = FROM: Joan I. Samuelson DATE: August 7, 1995 RE: 1996 FEDERAL BUDGET FOR NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH = On Friday August 4, the House of Representatives approved a 1996 budget f= or the National Institutes of Health of $11.9 billion, which is a 5.7% incre= ase ($642 million) over 1995. The appropriation now goes to the Senate, whic= h will prepare their own proposal on the schedule sketched out below. This memo describes a few details about the vote, and asks for your activ= e involvement now, which is a crucial time for Parkinson=92s research fundi= ng. = The House increase showed strong support for the NIH, given that the =93Labor-Health and Human Services=94 budget of which the NIH is a part w= as cut overall by $9 billion. Almost every other program in the budget =97 trai= ning, education, health and human services programs of all sorts =97 were eithe= r eliminated altogether or cut heavily. = That does not mean that this vote represented a great triumph for Parkins= on=92s research spending or brain-related research in general, for three reasons= =2E First, as Stengel said, it isn=92t over until it=92s over. The Senate m= ay eliminate the increase altogether or even cut the number below 1995 fundi= ng levels. Because of the huge cuts in other spending items, there will be h= uge pressure to trim these increases to make up for cuts elsewhere. The Clin= ton Administration has already pledged to veto the budget if necessary to res= tore many of the programs cut. Second, with biomedical inflation running at about 4%, this is a very sma= ll net increase, and the institutes doing Parkinson=92s research received th= e lowest priority. The increases for the National Institutes for Neurologi= cal Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and Aging (NIA) were 4.49% and 4.44% respectively, less than the percentage increases of any other institute. (The NIEHS (Environmental Health Sciences) proposed increase is 5.92%.) = Third, even an increase in those institutes would not necessarily transla= te into more Parkinson=92s research. The good news is that we continue to d= evelop more champions in Congress who are concerned with the neglect of Parkinso= n=92s research, and want to help. Your involvement could motivate them to take= action now, on this issue, that will make the difference. The voting is scheduled as follows: Senate Subcommittee on Labor/HHS vote: September 11 = Senate Full Committee vote: Later in September Full Senate vote: Soon thereafter House/Senate Conference Committee to resolve differences: September/Octo= ber To the President for signing: By October 1, start of the fiscal year [N= ote: Because of a promised Clinton veto, it is likely that the schedule will b= egin to slip at this point.] ACTION NEEDED: We need you (yes, you =97 scientist, clinician, Parkinson=92s-afflicted person, loved one, and everyone else who cares) t= o contact the members of the Senate Appropriations Committee this month, be= fore they tackle the budget upon return from their summer recess. (800)850-4726 Here is the latest co-sponsor list. Also, my sources have informed me th= at the following people have agreed to co-sponsor: Phil English (R-PA), Tom= Lantos, (D-CA), Bob Matsui (D-CA), James Moran (D-VA), John Murtha (D-PA)= , Robert Torricelli (D-NJ). Congratulations and thank you for your hard wo= rk! I'll keep you posted.